Hotter than Hell Creek

Fossil Dig 29 June 2011

Today put the heat in Hell Creek. The temperature was predicted to climb to 99 degrees, hotter than we have ever experienced on a fossil dig day in the five years we have been coming to this area. We soaked our cooling vests and bandanas in the morning in preparation, and hoped to cope with the challenge.

The large Budweiser banner was put up to shade an area for work breaks and lunch. The students were busy on the Tinker site, the CAT driver was on his ranch haying and Laurel and I walked over to check on her fossil. Just making sure it hadn't disappeared during the night. Steve recommended that we dig a little deeper around the fossil so the jacket will fit properly. He also suggested that Laurel dig a trench away from the fossil to drain water in case of rain.

Since a Triceratops skull had been found in the area, and Laurel's leg bones found together, Steve speculated there could be more bones nearby. He recommended that we probe every three inches in a 12 foot radius around her fossils, in the hopes there might be more buried treasure. The soil (dried mud), was so hard, the bayonet blades would barely penetrate the surface. We borrowed a probe from Doc, which worked better, but still required strength in hands and upper body.

We made very poor progress due to the difficult nature of the task, and the increasing temperatures. By 11:00 our cooling vests were nearly dry, (historically this did not happen until mid afternoon),and our backs and hands sore from bending over and pushing the probe into the hard betonite. We reluctantly decided that we could not continue this exercise and returned the tool to the Tinker dig site and sat under the banner to cool off a bit.

Not wanting to lose the day, we set off to the micro site with the idea that I could help Laurel find the tiny treasures while we were sitting down eating our lunches. It takes some minutes to get used to looking at the micro site area before you become aware of the "little gems". As it turned out, that small area at the base of a bluff, was more like a solar oven. The reflection on the light surface cooked us from below and the sun cooked us from above.

After eating about half our lunches, and drinking lots of water, we determined the prudent course was to leave the field and return to town to shop at the hardware store for supplies for the next day, and the grocery store for some additional produce. We couldn't stand the heat! What a disappointment: a lost collecting day.

We accomplished our shopping and I was able to finish the first blog entries and post them before we went to dinner with Dana and Gary at their ranch. We arrived at their ranch entrance where the gate was closed. I got out of the car to open the gate, but quickly realized I would not be able to wrangle it successfuly. Just as in the movies, Gary galloped up on his stallion and rescued the California ladies. Quite the sight.

Our evening with them was lovely. We shared old stories and recent news. Sadly, Dana's mom passed away suddenly in January and her father is still recovering from losing his beloved wife. Fortunately he lives nearby. There were plenty of laughs as well, as we ate delicious fish tacos and rhubarb crisp for dessert. We had brought a bottle of "Kick Ass" Rhubarb Wine from the Prairie Berry Winery, so you can see a theme for the meal. We learned later, from Steve, that Gary built a reproduction of an Egyptian chariot which is stored somewhere on the ranch. Perhaps next year we can ask for a ride! If we had only known sooner.

Since they were leaving the next day for a long weekend getaway, and we were leaving early for a new ranch, we made it an early night. Dana gave us all the leftovers for another yummy dinner back at our motel. Oh, thanks so much. Having friends we can visit in Buffalo is one of the many special extras of fossil hunting in this corner of Hell Creek. We are lucky.